The Snow Leopard Trivia Quiz

Answer: Asia

At the time of writing, in 2020, they are found in 12 countries in Asia. More than half of the snow leopards are in the high mountains of China. They are the top predator in the Himalayas.

Answer: Tiger

Tigers and snow leopards diverged from a common ancestor about 2 million years ago. Before 2010 snow leopards were thought to be related to the lion. The fur of a snow leopard us whitish gray.

Answer: They are active at dusk and dawn

Omnivores eat meat and vegetables and snow leopards are carnivores. Snow leopards usually hunt alone. They are not known to attack humans and are rarely seen.

Answer: They cannot roar

The snow leopard has a relatively long tail. In ultra cold weather, the tail can function as a type of scarf. Snow leopards can jump but they cannot glide 50 feet. Most large cats roar because their hyoid bone is not totally hardened allowing the ligaments to stretch. This is not the case for the snow leopard.

Answer: To warm incoming air

The snow leopard is very much adapted to living in very cold climates. The incoming air gets warmed in the enlarged nasal cavities. The nasal cavity does not help them find prey nor does it have a role in keeping quiet when they hunt.

Answer: Iran

They also live in Nepal, China, India, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Snow leopards live in very high mountains. The mountains of Iran are just not high enough for the snow leopard to survive because larger felines live in the mountains of Iran.

Answer: Chipmunks

There are no chipmunks in their environment. They also eat marmots and small game birds. The bharal is also called the blue sheep.

Answer: To sell their beautiful fur

The fur of a snow leopard is very beautiful. Laws now exist to stop the killing of snow leopards. No one uses their parts for medicine, perfume, or for food. Snow leopards have wide paws allowing them to act as snow shoes do for humans.

Answer: A little under 10,000

In 2020, between 4500 and 10,000 snow leopards exist in the wild. China has about 4,500. In 2016 zoologists found antibodies in the blood of snow leopards which can be dangerous to humans. The antibodies can cause Q fever, leptospirosis, and toxoplasmosis. The tics on the snow leopard can carry bacteria.

Answer: Snow leopards have never been in a "catch and release" program

It is only since 2016 that snow leopards have been in catch and release programs. They are caught, checked for any medical problems, and released to an area where they will have a lot of space. The money from the adoption program is used to protect the snow leopard.